Free By 50

PK, Yes thats a good point. Its actually somethin...

2012-02-14T10:45:51.600-08:00

PK, Yes thats a good point. Its actually something I was planning to talk about in a future post.

Jim

I wonder how much of some of the salaries (for exa...

2012-02-14T08:19:52.665-08:00

I wonder how much of some of the salaries (for example, CSCI from Stanford) are due to geographical advantages instead of academics or reputation? If the school is in a high cost area... or if like Stanford, it contributed to the foundations of an area... it might produce graduates who 'stick close to home' and receive higher average salaries.

I'm thinking University of Michigan vs. Stanford specifically, where both graduate engineering programs are ranked similarly. UMich engineers, however, make less on average than their Stanford peers. Could make for an interesting article?

Then don't live in LA.

2012-02-10T18:19:43.012-08:00

Then don't live in LA.

Personally I think if you've got a married cou...

2012-02-09T13:47:11.264-08:00

Personally I think if you've got a married couple then the net worth, retirement assets and incomes should be combined. So I would figure each by adding the total household assets or incomes.

Jim

You can't count all four years of skipped high...

2012-02-09T13:03:49.937-08:00

You can't count all four years of skipped high school depending on just what it is you do with your freed up time. I am neither a lawyer nor below 18, but I believe that most states have restrictions on how many hours and at what jobs minors can work depending on their age.

On the flip side, what if someone skips the wasted time in high school and just gets a GED? GED's generally have a bit of a stigma, but if you get the chance to explain that you got it early so you could start doing great things with your life, then it's not as bad.

And of course, if you found a billion dollar business of your own, neither of the previous two caveats apply.

The Seattle transit system is very downtown orient...

2012-02-09T12:58:25.049-08:00

The Seattle transit system is very downtown oriented. If you want to go from one downtown core to another, you can probably get a direct bus. Otherwise you have to transfer and that can take quite a while and make the whole experience a hassle. Furthermore, Metro has been consolidating routes into their "RapidRide" system which has worsened these effects, and have put out press releases indicating they intend to continue this "progress."

Not sure how to calculate net worth and retirement...

2012-02-09T08:56:36.045-08:00

Not sure how to calculate net worth and retirement in a two income family household?

Yes I agree that the $15,000 figure for living exp...

2012-02-06T13:39:27.164-08:00

Yes I agree that the $15,000 figure for living expenses is low. Its certainly very low for higher cost cities. But I think its not really unreasonable amount for a low/mid priced area. I picked it pretty arbitrarily.

However if I figured on higher living costs it would actually reinforce my point given the same numbers. If all the numbers were the same and you increased living cost to $25k/yr then saving as you go would take around 10 years and put you debt fee with a degree at about age 32. But if you went to college at age 18 and got loans you could be debt free around age 27.

Of course all the numbers are just example figures and nothing more.

Jim

In my experience, very few people will live on $15...

2012-02-06T12:24:35.970-08:00

In my experience, very few people will live on $15,000 a year in order to pay down their student loan debts. Maybe people should, but they don't, so it's a question of what happens in theory vs. what happens in real life. And this is not even possible in higher cost metro areas unless you're living with your parents.

It all depends on your priority when it comes to a...

2012-01-31T20:57:18.298-08:00

It all depends on your priority when it comes to airline seating. Convenience is all up to you.

These 3 tips are great, but we should keep in mind...

2012-01-30T05:38:24.999-08:00

These 3 tips are great, but we should keep in mind that if we start buying cheaper products then we should also have to compromise with quality.

It's either we're moving slowly to recover...

2012-01-30T03:08:33.078-08:00

It's either we're moving slowly to recovery or going deeper into the economic crisis.

Penny saved is penny earned. You have nicely moral...

2012-01-27T11:43:00.443-08:00

Penny saved is penny earned. You have nicely moralized the proverb. I liked the example you have given to determine which combination works best. Keep posting such interesting posts.

Job security plays a huge role..and don't forg...

2012-01-26T08:52:00.852-08:00

Job security plays a huge role..and don't forget the cost of relocating when you get laid off.

I unfortunately had a number of friends who got laid off in 2008 and 2009. You know where most of them ended up? In Boston or California, the most expensive places to live in the country. These places are expensive because they are where the high paying tech jobs are in both good times and bad. Not having to move if you get laid off is huge. Most low cost of living locations are a 1 trick pony. Even if you do manage to have a job at the one high tech company in po-dink town, if you lose it, 99% of the time, you have to move.

Very Good analysis

This is another side effect of the participation t...

2012-01-25T09:56:55.988-08:00

This is another side effect of the participation trophy generation. Play a sport, get a trophy even if your team does poorly. Attend school, get a good grade (trophy) even if you didn't really earn it.

2012-01-25T09:55:05.957-08:00

This comment has been removed by the author.

Bubble Bash 2 - Gameloft is one great game for my ...

2012-01-23T20:55:51.610-08:00

Bubble Bash 2 - Gameloft is one great game for my blackberry bold device. I really love the smoothness of this game in my phone.

Thanks for the include!

2012-01-23T08:29:19.960-08:00

Thanks for the include!

TaxAct.com will allow you to file both for < $2...

2012-01-20T05:41:32.460-08:00

TaxAct.com will allow you to file both for < $20. year after year, it seems to be the best deal around.

Though I didn't understand it at the time, I a...

2012-01-16T07:10:57.346-08:00

Though I didn't understand it at the time, I am very glad that my school required internships for all engineering students. I think it definitely helped when entering the job market.

I have N.O.V.A in my Blackberry phone running on i...

2012-01-15T21:15:55.896-08:00

I have N.O.V.A in my Blackberry phone running on iOS 7. It works perfectly great. Love it.

I try to avoid Shell at all costs. Cheap gasoline...

2012-01-12T21:12:26.447-08:00

I try to avoid Shell at all costs. Cheap gasoline isn't necessarily bad for your car. But it kinda degrades the engine performance for more expensive cars that take premium or plus fuel.

I find it hard to believe the median salaries of l...

2012-01-10T13:45:33.622-08:00

I find it hard to believe the median salaries of luxury car owners are that high. It's easy to drive a BMW if you are willing to lease an entry-level 3 series (which is their most popular model).

Also find out from the State Insurance Office if t...

2012-01-09T22:14:41.328-08:00

Also find out from the State Insurance Office if the company in question has hit its policy holders with rate increases on their premiums. This could be a definite red flag that you do not want to do business with them.

Fascinating. I wouldn't have guessed that the...

2012-01-09T06:31:58.663-08:00

Fascinating. I wouldn't have guessed that the volatility would have been the same. I suppose that is why emotions and feelings shouldn't play a role in our investing decisions.